And Then
by Kanoi-chan
Summary: Lea has started avoiding Kairi, and she's determined to find out why. -Follow up to "These Moments We Like the Best" but can be read as a stand alone, as well.


This is basically a follow up to my fic "These Moments We Like the Best," which pretty much the only reason it isn't being sequestered to the corners of my dA and tumblr due to length. However, it can certainly be read as a stand alone fic if you so choose.

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts, and am making no profit off this. Please don't sue. You wouldn't get very much anyway =)

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She found herself watching him again. It seemed to have become a new sort of pastime for her. It wasn't as if she went out of her way to do it or anything, it just seemed to happen. She'd finally stopped making excuses for it though, things like she was trying to learn from him or, before that, that she was suspicious of his motives. Now, it was just a thing she did. Granted, it was a thing she did frequently, but he was kind enough not to point it out.

They had grown closer over the months of training together at the Mysterious Tower, friendly one might say. They'd grown even closer since that day they'd confided in each other on top of the clock tower in Twilight Town. After that, they began regularly spending time together, both during and outside of training. She knew Sora and Riku found it odd, but other than a few questioning glances at the two, they never said a word, at least not to her. She had a sneaking suspicion they'd mentioned something to Lea, though. He had started avoiding her about a week ago, and it was starting to drive her crazy. She still sat and watched him while he trained, but he always seemed to disappear afterward. Today, though, she wasn't about to let him run.

Mentally resolved to her task, she left the shade of the tree she had been standing under and approached Lea.

He was so immersed in ignoring her that he didn't notice she was near him until his keyblade collided with her's in a loud, metallic clang. He immediately jumped back in surprise, staring at her until shock turned to annoyance.

"What the hell, Princess? Are you trying to get yourself hurt!" Lea demanded.

"I'm perfectly capable of handling myself, thank you very much," she responded, glaring back at him.

"I didn't even know you were there," he argued.

"Then I'm getting better at stealth," she countered hotly.

They stared each other down for a moment more before Lea turned with a huff and started to walk away.

"Wait a minute!" Kairi called, reaching out and grabbing his arm.

He turned around and glared at her, but it lacked the fire he'd had just a moment before.

"What do you want?" he asked, and he sounded tired, defeated in some way.

His tone took Kairi by surprise, and she slowly released her hold on him, arm falling to her side.

"I just wanted to know why you've been ignoring me," she muttered, eyes downcast, suddenly feeling like a scolded child.

"I haven't been."

"That's bull!" she shouted, head snapping back up to look at him.

He refused to meet her eyes, looking anywhere but at her.

"Did Sora or Riku say something to you?"

This made him actually look at her, confusion clearly painted on his face. "What?'

Well, that answered that question.

"If not them, then what!" Kairi demanded, all but stomping her foot in frustration. She lowered her head. "I thought you were the one person I could always count on to be honest with me, so what is it?" She started sniffling.

With a guilty sigh, Lea looked at her seriously, almost sadly. "It's getting too hard to be around you."

Kairi looked back up at him, cheeks flushed with the effort of stubbornly holding back tears, trying to look understanding and not at all like what he said cut her deeply. "Because of Xion? Because I remind you of her?"

"Not... exactly." He scratched the back of his head nervously.

She was starting to get frustrated again, and her voice cracked ever so slightly when she asked, "Then what?"

He looked at her sadly, seeming to be mulling something over. Kairi watched him, prepared to yell at him if he continued avoiding the question or giving her stupid answers. Finally, his eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly, as he seemed to come to some kind of conclusion.

"I'm sure someone somewhere will strike me down for this," he said.

And then, he kissed her.


End file.
